As the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) is preparing to conduct a free and fair governorship election in Ondo State on October 10, 2020, a pioneer leader of the Peoples Democratic Party(PDP) in the State who had served the party in various capacities, Hon. Solomon Bitire, a former Secretary and Chairman of the PDP in Okitipupa Local Government Council for several years and a former Chairman of Chairmen of the PDP across the 18 local governments of the State for 8 years, have said that the PDP in Ondo State is dead ahead of the gubernatorial election because according to Bitire, the Ondo State PDP has been divided into seven political camps and none of them is ready to work for the candidate of the party ahead of the election. In this exclusive interview with Starnews Nigeria Correspondent, Obed Chuks, the PDP chieftain spoke on the chances of his party ahead of the election on October 10.
There are rumours making the round that you are no longer a member of the PDP in Ondo State, what is your reaction to this sir.
That’s not true. Please disregard such rumour. Since 1999, I have been a member of the PDP to date and I had served the party in various capacities till date. So, as at now, I remain a PDP member. I don’t know about tomorrow.
Ahead of the governorship election, what can you say about the chances of PDP in unseating the ruling All Progressive Congress (APC) and its candidate, Governor Oluwarotimi Akeredolu?
My brother, you are just putting hands in my mouth to start talking. As a journalist, you have information than I do. You and I know that the Ondo State PDP is dead and everyone is just waiting for the final burial on October 10, the deal day for the governorship election.
… Sir, why do you say that the Ondo PDP is dead?
The party is dead already. No house divided against himself can stand. Even the Bible said that a house divided against itself cannot stand. You see! Ondo PDP has been divided into 7 political camps since the emergence of Mr Eyitayo Jegede (SAN) as the winner of the PDP governorship primaries. Don’t forget that the agitation for southern agenda was very loud before the primaries. But because the election was for the highest bidder as you all can see then, and because all the aspirants from the South couldn’t resolve within themselves to pick one person, Eyitayo Jegede emerged the candidate of the PDP. Since his emergence, he has been leading the party like a dictator. He did not only manipulate the party structure to favour his political camp, he never considers the political interests of others due to his attitude to dominate and pocket all the structures of the party with those who worked with him in the just concluded primaries. He has forgotten that the primary is over and that the election proper needs the support of everyone this time. He doesn’t care to integrate other members of the party who didn’t work for him in the last election to have one formidable team ahead of the poll. In fact, instead of him to initiate a timely reconciliation, members of his group were busy mocking aggrieved members of the PDP on social media believing they can win the election alone without others.
Still, you haven’t spoken about how the party was divided into seven?
Yes, I was actually coming to that before you interjected. For his attitude of a winner takes all, the Ondo State deputy governor left the party to join the Zenith Labour Party (ZLP) because Jegede claimed he can’t work with him. He turned a deaf ear to all the counsels to pick Ajayi as a running mate. I am aware he didn’t even approach him for the position of the deputy not minding if the man will accept or not. Even after the news was broken that Ajayi will jump ship, Jegede and his team didn’t worry about it. They didn’t set up a reconciliation team. They made little or no effort to convince him to stay in the PDP. As I speak, Agboola Ajayi has left for the ZLP and many people who worked for him during the PDP primary are already with him with their hearts, spirits and souls. That’s the first division. The second aspect is that, unknowingly to Jegede, the remaining other governorship aspirants and their loyalists across the 18 local governments of Ondo State will not support his governorship campaign for betraying their gentlemen agreement with the elder’s council by foisting the nomination of Hon. Ikengboju Gboluga, a serving Member of the House of Representatives representing Okitipupa/Irele Federal Constituency on the PDP as his running mate, which was done in stiff defiance to the advice of party leaders within and outside Ondo State PDP. This has really portrayed him as a rigidly conservative person that will always override superior majority views of party members. He pretended to have heeded several pieces of advice offered him to pick his running mate outside his political camp to foster the bond of unity and reconciliation needed to guarantee victory for the PDP in the forthcoming gubernatorial election, but Jegede dribbly like a Maradona, went ahead to announce Gboluga as his running mate in disapproval of the leaders of the party. I can assure you, thousands of PDP members loyal to these aspirants would not support Jegede’s election. I am even aware some have given directives on the way forward against Jegede’s election and all the aspirants are already in talks regularly for a common goal ahead of the poll. Just that most of them didn’t make their positions public. I know what I am saying when I said the PDP in Ondo State is dead politically ahead of the election.
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